The Crowned Princess
by Squizzy-Taylor
Summary: Crowned prince Ichigo is barely 18 when his father arranges his marriage with the 17-year-old Lady Orihime Inoue, the ward of Lord Aizen. Furious at the thought of being forced to marry a little girl who just wants to be a princess Ichigo closes his heart to the young girl. But he soon realizes that situation is not all he thinks.
1. Chapter 1

This is my first story that I have published, I have a few that I have started but unfortunately I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to my story lines and the order of the events. Anyway I hope you enjoy and I always welcome ideas about how you want the story to go.

Crowned prince Ichigo is barely 18 when his father arranges his marriage with the 17-year-old Lady Orihime Inoue, the ward of Lord Aizen. Furious at the thought of being forced to marry a little girl who just wants to be a princess Ichigo closes his heart to the young girl. But he soon realizes that situation is not all he thinks and finds himself in danger of having his kingdom stolen and maybe his heart as well.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or the Bleach characters.

**The Crowned Princess **_By Squizzy-Taylor_

Ichigo had just got back from a month long trip to his grandmothers when his father requested his presence in his office. Walking down the corridor he gave an audible sigh, his father was a child and never had anything important to say.

"TAKE THAT!" Ichigo sidestepped to avoid his father's roundhouse kick as he walked through his father's office door. This caused the King to collide with the wall with a rather loud bang. "Well done my son, you evaded my attack!"

"Whatever old man" he said as he slumped into one of the large, old armchairs.

"My son, you are nineteen now, so I have decided that it is now time for you to become a man."

"What are you babbling about now?"

"My dear, dear son, it is time you were married… and have pick the perfect woman for you." He said with glee.

"W-W-What?" he was in a state of complete shock, he had only just turned eighteen and his father was already marring him off. "I c-c-can't, I wont."

"Why?" He said with a sulking face.

"Because… There is no way I am going to marry some stuck up rich, spoilt girl, that just wants to be a princess" and with that he got up and walked out of the office leaving his father sulking like a child.

**_One week later._**

Orihime walked up the marble steps and through the large, oak front door. She was glowing, her hair was shining in the sun and her smile was dazzling, but her heart… her heart was in despair. She had been abroad for almost two years now and today she was finally going home. Leaving the beautiful city of Venice would have been enough to dull the heart of any young lady, but this was different. Orihime had been the ward of Lord Aizen since the death of her family when she was four. He was a cruel man, with no love in his heart and with a smile so evil, it rivaled that of the devil himself. Now she was back in is charge with a fake smile blasted on her face, trying desperately to hide her fear. She heard the hushed voices of servants as she walked inside and down the hall toward one of the many sitting rooms, the one where he would be waiting.

"Orihime, welcome home, my dear." He did not turn around to welcome her.

"My Lord." She bowed gracefully at his back.

"I have good news, you are to be married to the heir of the Royal Kurosaki family, Crowned Prince Ichigo Kurosaki." He stated with indifference.

"W-W-What?" she was in a state of complete shock, she was not yet eighteen and he was already marring her off. "I c-c-can't, I w-wont."

At this, Aizen turned to look at her, she was different from how he remembered her; when he sent her abroad to further her education, she was just a fifteen-year-old girl. What stood before him now was a beautiful young woman, she was thin but voluptuous, short but still clearly a fully-grown woman. Her face had thinned out giving her a more womanly appearance. She was truly the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, but she was worth a lot as an exchange and as he could not have her for himself, he would exchange her to help achieve his goal. He gave an inaudible sigh and took two quick steps towards her. She heard a loud slap before she felt a searing pain across her left cheek.

"You will do as you are told" and with that he left her standing in the sitting room completely shocked. He always was a scary guardian but he had never laid a hand on her before, not once.

It had been a week since their brother had returned home from visiting their grandmother and he was still angry. Yuzu and Karin where eating breakfast while watching the King and Prince fight. All week their brother and father had been fighting on weather or not Ichigo would marry Lady Inoue. She was the ward of Sosuke Aizen, a very powerful and dangerous man, but the King was determined to have Lady Inoue as a daughter-in-law and Ichigo was determined to choose his own bride in his own time.

"JUST TELL ME WHY? Why are you so hung up on me marring a complete stranger?" Ichigo yelled through the breakfast parlor.

All of a sudden, the king stopped his antics and turned towards his son. His face was no longer the face of a stubborn child but that of a wise man, it was the face of a king.

"The late Lady Inoue was the Queens best friend. She died almost fourteen years ago. It was your mothers wish that Inoue be brought to the royal family and that when you both became of age you two would be married. Somehow, her custody fell into the hands of Aizen who declined any offer for her to move in with us at the palace. Your mom would visit her at least once a week until she too passed away, three years after the death of her friend." Looking up into his sons eyes they king sighed before continuing, "It was her dying wish that you two be wed, so I have made the arrangements. The wedding will take place in three days time."

His son was at a loss of what to say; he knew he would not be able to say no, not after knowing that it had been his mothers dying wish.

"Dad, why did you never tell me this? Why have I not met this girl before?"

"Aizen, never brought her to any social gatherings that you attended, he was very insistent that you two would not met but now, he has agreed to marriage, so that is that, you will be married by the end of the week… OH! But you must wait a month before you an go on your honeymoon, you can't go until this business with the Kuchiki's is over".

"Fine" and with that Ichigo stomped out of the room.

Orihime was sitting in her private sitting room while she read one of her French history books. Despite French being her fourth language, she had no trouble reading the difficult passages. It was a beautiful day and she had wanted to spend it in the gardens, even if all she did was read her history book out in the sun. Unfortunately, she had been locked in her chambers since she had refused the hand of the prince, not that _he_ had really offered it. She had spent the time catching up on her Greek and French history as well as practicing her calculus. Her reading was interrupted by the sound of her door opening; she looked over her shoulder to see her guardian entering the room with his first officer following close behind. Placing her book on the table she stood to greet her guests.

"My Lord, Sir Ulquiorra" She curtsied as she addressed the two gentlemen.

Ulquiorra bowed low and from the waist while Aizen simply gave a nod of his head before speaking.

"Have you accepted your fate, my dear?"

"M-m-my f-fate, but I do not love him, how can I marry someone that I do not love?" Unable to control her emotions her voice shook with the beginnings of her oncoming hysteria.

"My dear sunshine," Aizen began to walk toward her as he spoke. "I took you in, I put a roof over your head, I clothed you, feed you and this is how you repay me?"

Her eyes began to swell with tears as she tried to form a reply.

"I-I-I'm sorry, I don't mean to be disrespectful or ungrateful but I can't betray my heart like that, I will not marry someone that I don't love."

The smile never left his face as he gave a tired sigh and turned around so that Orihime could not see his face, "My dear, I'm sorry but I have to disagree. I feel that as your guardian it is my responsibility to insure you do what's best for you. You must understand that it is my job to… _convince_ you to make the right choice. You don't mind do you?" He turned to face her once again at that last sentence.

Confused and scared, all Orihime would do was nod, after all off course all he would want is what is best for her. "Good, Ulquiorra also wishes to encourage you to make the right discussion, so for now I will leave you in his care, Ulquiorra I trust you know what I expect."

"My Lord" his emotionless answer was sharp and respectful as the officer bowed to his departing lord.

Orihime once again curtsied, but as she raised her head she felt a shape pain as the officers fist collided with her stomach. She doubled over but before she had time to recover she was pulled upright by her hair only to be struck again. This continued until she heard the unfamiliar sound of her ribs snapping, which was the point in which she lost consciousness.


	2. Chapter 2 - Preparations

**Chapter 2 Preparations **

"So… when do we get to meet her?" Yuzu's smiling face came out of nowhere blocking Ichigo's view of the book he had in his lap. Ichigo was a great reader and he did not appreciate being interrupted while he was engrossed in one of his novels.

"You can meet her wright after I do… on my wedding day." he deadpanned.

"What? You mean your not going to meet her before the big day? You can't do that, you have to meet her… today!" Yuzu was shocked at the show of indifference displayed by her brother. He was going to be married in two days to a woman he had yet to meet, and by the way he was acting, he did not even want to meet her.

"Look Yuzu, I have to spend the rest of my life with this woman, having two days of peace before the wedding is the least I deserve" And with that he stood and went to go read in his private study.

_**Later That Evening **_

"My Lord, as predicted the Prince has shown no interest in meeting Lady Inoue before their marriage." Gin smiled as he address the brown haired man that was sitting across from him in front of the large fireplace. Upon hearing this news, Aizen simply smirked, unlike the room's third occupant.

"However that may be, I still believe that the marriage should be postponed until her wounds heal. The prince is a health young man; once he sets his eyes on his new wife he will not hesitate to consummate the marriage before her injuries have had time to heal."

"And that's coming from a blind man" Gin snickered as Aizen stood from his chair and turned to face his two companions.

"You underestimate the Prince, Tosen. His father has scheduled their honeymoon for one month after their wedding. With Orihime's unusual accelerated healing her injuries will be completely healed in half that time. The prince will not touch her until then. I believe he is under the impression that he is a gentlemen and therefore will be none the wiser about Orihime's initial reluctance."

"I take it then, that she has agreed to the marriage?"

"Yes, I believe she has reconsidered her options and now agrees that her union with the Prince is in everybody's best interests." Gin could not help but answer Tosen's inquiry instead of Lord Aizen. There was never any doubt that Aizen's plan would work, after all, Aizen was always ten steps ahead.

_**The Wedding Day**_

Today was the day; the day that every little girl dreamed of. It had been a week and three days since she had arrived home. A week and three days since she had first been informed about her engagement to the crowned prince and three days since she had been … _persuaded _to agree to said engagement. The royal family's 'function planners' had organized everything, the day she had agreed, two old women had come to take her measurements for her gown.

Orihime was now seated in the back of a white chase and four being taken to the castle for her hair and makeup appointment. The carriage pulled up, the footman jumping down to open her door. She hung her head low as she walked up the marble stairs and through the large wooden doors. She had yet to looking up when she felt something painfully collide with her chest. Her thoughts were immediately drawn to the day when Aizen had left her alone in Ulquiorra's company. She could not hold back the shriek that escaped her lips as she pulled away from the body that had just connected with hers. With her back to the wall and her arms brought up defensively in front of her, Orihime struggled to control her breathing.

"I'm sorry, I did not mean to frighten you" Orihime lifted her head at the sound of sweet young voice. She looked into the worried honey brown eyes of a little girl with pale hair. Standing next too her with the same worried expression was another young girl with hair of a much darker shade. "I was just so happy to finally meet you properly," continued the now awkward girl. It was at this point that Orihime realized just who was standing before her and just how she behaved in their presents.

"Your highnesses, please allow me to apologize, I was just startled, that is all, please forgive my inexcusable behavior" The two girls stood with shocked expressions across their faces as they stared at the bowing woman before them. They had met the Lady Inoue before at a social event several years ago, but that had just been a formal introduction, and they had not had the time to speak more then a few short words of introduction between the three of them. By the time Lady Inoue was sent away, they had seen her at least a dozen times at various social occasions. However, the beauty was always kept on a tight leash, always with her head down, always a pace behind Lord Aizen but despite only ever being present for the first hour or so before she was escorted home, she always had a smile spread wide across her face. The famous beauty was kept away from the public eye as much a possible; no man dared address her, for fear of her caretaker's wrath. Now, the woman was to become their sister, and they could talk and play together for as long as they liked.

After a moment had passed, Yuzu regained her composure enough to speak again.

"N-no, there is nothing to forgive, I'm sorry I should not have jumped on you so suddenly, I wanted to meet you so much that I could not help myself."

"You have already met her, you used to go to the same parties before she was sent away." Mumbled the darker head girl in a tone that could only be described as a combination of annoyance and boredom.

"That's not the same, I've only ever had a formal introduction and that lasted all of three seconds, and that was years ago"

"You have no one to blame but yourself, you're the one that was always to scared to go and talk to her because of _that _man."

"It's not my fault, I'm not the only one who is scared of him, and you wont go near him either"

"No one, who is in their right mind would ever go near _that_ psychopath."

"Karin, don't say that in front of Lady Inoue, she's his ward!"

"That just means she should know better then anyone just how much of a psycho he really is!" With that, she gave a nod and turned on her heel to head towards her designated chair, ready to have her hair and make-up done.

The two other ladies stood in the doorway monetarily before making their way over to there own chairs. The team of servants flocked around the three and began their work to prepare them for the royal wedding. To Orihime's left the three middle aged servants that steps forward to attend to Yuzu did not hesitate to greet her with smiles and begin to start twisting and pulling her hair into elegant curls gathered with a light pink ribbon tied with bow. The situation to her right however was quite different. Two younger servants stood hesitantly behind an older, more experienced servant. As they stepped forward and began to work on Karin's hair, Karin moved her head from left to right claiming that the woman were too rough, making it almost impossible for the servants to work.

"Ouch, why do they make us suffer such torture?" Karen moaned as she once again tried to move her head out of reach of the many hands trying to grab her hair.

The girls' outburst shocked Orihime, that is, until she heard the childish laughter come from the girl on her other side. Stealing a glance at Yuzu she could not help the grin that spread across her face as the girl explained.

"Karin hates having her hair done!" she giggled.

Soon the three girls were talking and laughing away and before long, it was time to be dressed and Orihime was ushered into a separate room were her gown lay waiting. She was memorized by its beauty as she stood before the masterpiece made of the finest silks and lace. With her mind preoccupied, she did not notice the door shut behind her, leaving her in the room with four servants. They quickly brought back her attention as they stepped forward and began to undress her despite her protests. The head servant was an elderly woman, who had taking the task of undoing the buttons on the back of her dress. He hands however immediately came to a stop when the dress was parted enough to reveal smooth skin stained with purple patches. Doing the dress back up, she turned her attention to the other three servants before addressing them.

"It seems Lady Inoue is shy, perhaps she would feel more comfortable with less eyes upon her. If the rest of you would wait outside I will continue this alone so that she feels more comfortable" The three other servants bowed in acknowledgement before taking their leave shutting the door once again behind them. With the two alone, the elderly woman began once again to undo Orihime's dress.

"So my lady, you have managed to secure the heart of the handsome Prince Kurosaki." Orihime could not tell if it was a question or a statement. The woman had a kind and understanding smile, giving Orihime the feeling that she was being addressed by a loving grandmother, rather then a servant. "When did the Prince finally ask for your hand? You could not have been engaged long or there would have been a formal engagement party." Completely taken of guard by the woman's inquiry, Orihime could do nothing but stare with a baffled expression before she was final able to compose herself enough to form a reply.

"Well… you see, this marriage was arranged by the King and my guardian, Lord Aizen. I have not had the pleasure of meeting the Prince in person." Orihime looked down shyly in order to avoid the woman gaze as she stuttered out her reply.

"I see, do not worry yourself my dear, I have known the Prince all his life, I'm sure the two of you will get along very well." The woman smile's was so comforting, Orihime could not help but voice her worries.

"But it's just so sudden… I'm not yet eighteen and I'm getting married to a man I have never meet." Her voice was so small and shaky that Orihime wondered if the woman could understand a single word she was saying.

"When were you first asked to marry the Prince, if you don't mind my asking, your highness?"

"Just over a week ago, when I first arrived home from my time abroad."

"And when did you accept the proposal?" She asked the question in such a way, that Orihime felt she already knew the answer.

"Three days ago" Her reply came just as her dress fell to the floor leaving her in nothing but three-day-old bruises.


End file.
